Simeone warns Atleti against taking 'competitive team' Lokomotiv lightly

Atletico appear as favorites for Tuesday’s Group A fixture, but Diego Simeone feels his side will be made to work hard for three points.

Atletico Madrid prepare to take on Lokomotiv Moscow in the matchday 3 of the Champions League group stages.

With Bayern Munich also in the group and the defending champions expected to reach the next rounds with flying colors, both teams will be determined to grab a win in order to make their case strong for qualifying to the next stage.

On paper, the three points looks easy for the visitors. The Russian side have had no success in nine of their last 11 European outings against Spanish opposition. Also, they have failed to win their opening two group games this campaign.

Atleti will be going into the match with high morale, having won their previous La Liga encounter 3-1 against Osasuna.

“We’re going up against a very competitive team,” Diego Simeone told in his pre-match press conference, via Marca.

“Apart from four draws from their last 14 games, the defeats weren’t by more than one goal. They’re always competitive games and we have to go back 15 matches to find a 2-0 defeat for Lokomotiv.

“They know how to compete and we’ll have to take the game where we can do the most damage.”